This invention relates generally to disposable absorbent articles and more specifically to packages of disposable absorbent articles, such as pantiliners, to keep them clean, but readily removable from the package when desired for use.
Heretofore the packaging of pantiliners, sanitary napkins, and other sanitary absorbent articles which are designed for storage in a user""s purse to keep them clean until needed has been accomplished by individually wrapping each absorbent article in its own package. Typically this is accomplished by folding each of the absorbent articles and then wrapping each individually in either a plastic film or paper stock. The plural individually wrapped articles may then be packaged in a carton or a flexible plastic film bag for sale. The purchaser/user can then remove one or more of the individually wrapped articles to place it/them in her purse for later use. One example of one such a packaged product is an overnight ultrathin maxipad sold by The Kendall Confab Retail Group, a division of the assignee of this invention, under the trademark FRESH TIMES(copyright).
The patent literature also includes numerous examples of packages for individual absorbent articles. See for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,555,022 (Eagon et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 4,556,146 (Swanson), U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,477 (Frxc3x6idh et al.), 5,569,230 (Fisher et al.), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,827,251 (Moder) and U.S. Des. Pat. No. D336,130.
While the prior art individual packaging is generally suitable for its intended purposes it still leaves much to be desired from various standpoints. For example, if a user wishes to store several articles in her purse, the use of several individually wrapped units will inherently take up considerable space in the purse. Moreover, the individual packages can shift around so as to wind up located in various portions of the purse.
Plural disposable sanitary napkins in a single package have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,564,108 (Widlund et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,625 (Widlund).
Notwithstanding the foregoing a need exists for a package containing plural disposable absorbent sanitary articles which easily accessible to enable the ready retrieval of an article from the package while the remaining articles are kept in a clean protective environment, and which is compact in configuration and aesthetically pleasing.
The combination of a package and plural absorbent pads, e.g., pantiliners. Each of the pads is an elongated generally planar member arranged to be worn by a wearer to trap and collect fluid waste products. Each pad includes a body engaging surface and has a periphery in the form of an opposed pair of end portions and an opposed pair of side portions, with the dimensions of the side portions being longer than the end portions. Each of the pads is folded along a line extending transversely to the side portions of the pad so that its body engaging surface forms the inner surface of the folded pad. The folded pads are stacked on top of each other. The package is formed of a flexible sheet material, e.g., a plastic film, and has a hollow interior into which the stack of pads is located. The package can take various forms, e.g., a pouch, a parallelepiped shaped gusseted member, etc., and has an openable mouth, e.g., a weakened line in a portion of the material making up the package, two overlapping edges of the material making up the package, etc. The openable mouth is located immediately adjacent the stack of pads so that the user can grasp one of the pads to remove it from the package through the openable mouth.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention the folded pads are stacked one atop another with the fold line of each pad being located closely adjacent the fold line of the other pads, and with the openable mouth located closely adjacent the fold lines of the stack so that the user can grasp one of the pads at its fold line to remove it from the package through the openable mouth.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention folded pads are interleaved in the stack so that removal of one pad from the package brings a portion of another pad to the location of the openable mouth to facilitate the removal of that other pad from the package, when desired.